604 chapter 64
How-to-do-it reference materials for wheelchairs, wheelboards,
and other seating
It is impossible, in a book such as this, to give detailed building plans for more than
a few wheelchairs, scooters, wheelboards (trolleys), and special seats. The following
reference materials have more detailed plans. You can send for them at the addresses
shown. Some may also be available from TALC, P.O. Box 49, St. Albans, Herts,
AL1 4AX, England. With each reference we give one or more drawings of key designs
and a few comments about their usefulness and cost.
Personal Transport for Disabled
People—Design and Manufacture
WHEELCHAIRS
Healthlink Worldwide
56-64 Leonard Street,
London EC2A 4LT,
UNITED KINGDOM
wood
Also available through TALC
TROLLEYS
• many good designs and plans for low-cost aids
• does not compare strengths and weaknesses
or describe limitations of different designs
• no design for wheelchairs with casters in
front (which are needed for many areas)
metal
Independence through Mobility:
A Guide to the Manufacture of the
ATI-Hotchkiss Wheelchair
Whirlwind Wheelchair International
San Francisco State University,
1600 Holloway Ave. SCI 251,
San Francisco, CA 94132, USA
• design for the ‘whirlwind’, a high-quality
middle-cost steel tube wheelchair that can
be built by disabled craftspersons as a village
industry
• short training usually needed to build it
effectively; welding skills and simple math
required
• cost of materials about US $100
metal
from a
chair
wood
TWO-HAND
DRIVEN
TRICYCLE
Local Village-made Wheelchairs
and Trolleys
by Don Caston
Available upon request.
TROLLEYS
DON CASTON
202 Cheesman Terrace
London W14 9XD
ENGLAND
• simple, very low-cost aids, made mostly out
of wood, using bicycle or wood wheels
• all models are based on one 3-wheel trolley
design
• Instead of a standard caster, the front slides
on its axle and is pushed back to center by a
choice of simple methods. (This method is
cheap and clever, but unstable and does not
turn as well as designs with casters.)
piece of inner tube
to center wheel
after turning
SALES CART
WHEELCHAIRS
Disabled village Children